Zelensky Says Russia Struck Kyiv and Kharkiv Power Plants Hours After Trump’s Energy Ceasefire Announcement

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Sunday that Russian forces struck power plants in Kyiv and Kharkiv hours after President Donald Trump announced an immediate “energy ceasefire” between Russia and Ukraine — an arrangement Zelensky said he learned about only when it was made public.

Trump made the announcement in a post on his Truth Social platform on Sunday, October 11, writing that Russia and Ukraine had agreed to stop attacks on each other’s energy infrastructure, effective immediately. “Both parties have agreed. Do not break it!” the post said, according to multiple reports.

Zelensky told Axios in an interview that the announcement caught Kyiv off guard, but said Ukraine would support the arrangement if Russia agreed as well and if Washington explained when it would take effect. “We are ready, and we will accept it,” he said.

Hours later, Zelensky reported that Russian drones had struck a power plant in Kyiv, causing outages in several districts, and that strikes on energy infrastructure continued through the day. In a later statement on Sunday, he said the CHP-5 thermal power plant in Kharkiv — a major facility supplying heat and electricity to the city — had been attacked that evening. A Ukrainian official confirmed the Kharkiv strike occurred after Trump’s statement, according to Reuters.

Moscow had not publicly confirmed its acceptance of the ceasefire as of Sunday night. The Kremlin did not immediately respond to requests for comment, according to the reports.

A second announcement in a month

This was the second time in less than a month that Trump had announced an energy ceasefire between the two countries, according to The Wall Street Journal. A similar announcement on September 14 was rebuffed by Russian President Vladimir Putin, and both sides continued exchanging strikes on energy facilities.

Zelensky said he had discussed Trump’s latest announcement with NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and Finnish President Alexander Stubb. He reiterated that Ukraine supported the proposal but was waiting for details from the American side, and that any halt to attacks had to apply to both countries.

Diesel deal and rising tensions

The ceasefire announcement came amid growing friction between Washington and Kyiv over a separate deal in which Russia agreed to supply more than 300,000 metric tons of diesel — about 2.25 million barrels — to the United States and global markets, according to the reports. Trump has blamed Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refineries for rising diesel prices ahead of next month’s U.S. midterm elections, and has pressed Kyiv to stop those attacks.

Trump also called for new elections in Ukraine, where voting has been suspended under martial law. Zelensky said he would organize elections if Putin agreed to a total ceasefire lasting 60 days.

In an ABC News interview aired on Sunday, Zelensky said Russia had carried out 196 attacks on Ukraine’s electricity network and 20 on its oil and gas facilities over the previous week, and that Russian missile and drone attacks on cities had killed 153 people during that period.

With Moscow silent on the proposal and Kyiv reporting continued strikes, it remained unclear on Sunday night whether Trump’s announcement would lead to any reduction in attacks on energy infrastructure.

Reporting based on coverage by Live Mint, citing Reuters, The Wall Street Journal, Axios and ABC News; and by GWURld, citing Reuters and the Associated Press.